Human-Canine Bond

Here are some more Golden thoughts from the April 17, 2001 USA Today article, "Emotion Runs Deeper than Wagging Motion," by Anita Manning: Formal education notwithstanding, Schoen says one of the most important and powerful teachers in his life was Megan, a very special Golden Retriever. A stray, Megan found her way to Schoen just in time. She was hungry and sick, infected with heartworm. Schoen helped her to recover, and the two bonded as kindred souls. Megan accompanied him on his veterinary rounds and soon displayed an uncanny, even spooky ability to empathize with other species. Megan became his medical assistant.

He describes, in his book, one cold night when they were called to a farm where Jesse, a cow, was having trouble delivering her calf. ''When she sees Jesse starting to strain once again, she approaches carefully, as though to make sure that the cow, who has met her many times before, recognizes her and accepts her presence. Once Megan feels she has a clear signal, she starts licking Jesse's face. The contact seems to have both a calming and a revitalizing effect on the struggling animal.''

Even during her last days, when she was dying of cancer, Megan seemed to know how to care for herself. She would go to a nearby spring and soak her tumorous leg in mud, a time-honored way to reduce inflammation. When it was time for Schoen to put her out of her misery, Megan lifted her paw so he could inject the needle. Schoen struggles to understand how Megan developed such insight and sensitivity. ''When they're in our presence, animals develop consciously to a different level,'' he says. ''If they're out in the wild, they're just a dog. But when they're with us, they study us, mimic our behavior patterns. Megan, by watching me all the time, started developing herself. . . . And there's part I can't explain. I think as she watched me take care of other animals, she started doing that in her own way. That, combined with her maternal instincts, being a Golden Retriever . . . '' He trails off, unable to fully explain the unexplainable.

Kindred Spirits - Healing Your Pet Naturally (2001)
Allen Schoen, one of the most celebrated veterinarians in the US, presents this video that details the benefits of healing your pet naturally and offers instructions for the many techniques that he has used throughout his career. A believer that all animals have emotions and feelings, Schoen began his research into natural healing in the 1970s, at a time when his colleagues neither understood nor cared about what he was doing. Today, Schoen's efforts have proved remarkably successful, and this video documents and shares the remarkable transformative power of his healing methods. Originally shown on PBS, this special home video version contains footage never aired on television.

The Lazy Dog's Guide to Enlightenment
Enlightenment doesn’t always come in the form we expect it. It need not be a self-styled guru or a complicated contraption measuring some mysterious quality. Sometimes it’s as close as the Chocolate Lab bounding happily through the backyard, or the feisty Terrier contentedly curled up on one’s lap for a nap. In the foreword to this thoughtful, wonderfully illustrated gift book by Andrea Hurst and Beth Wilson, Dr. Bernie Siegel says, “Dogs are healers. . . . They seem to have figured out how to live beautifully so much better than we humans have.”

Loosely modeled on 1980’s underground classic The Lazy Man’s Guide to Enlightenment, this charming book celebrates the simple wisdom and that special combination of natural earthiness and subtle spirituality that characterizes humankind’s best friend. Distinctive black-and-white dog images by acclaimed photographer Zackary Folk are accompanied by captions of down-to-earth spiritual wisdom “from” the dogs to their often confused “owners.”

The Rosetta Bone (2004)
Written by Cheryl Smith. 2004 Dog Writers Assn. of America Writing Competition Winner, Best Training & Behavior book! Far too often, we humans expect our dogs to understand what we say to them. Though we may spend a lot of time talking to them, we’re really not communicating. And without proper communication, it’s impossible to train a dog properly, let alone make your human/canine relationship a rewarding one. Packed with unique insights and gentle training advice, The Rosetta Bone provides average dog owners with the know-how they need to decipher canine meanings, communicate effectively, increase training success, and share a deeper bond. Focusing on the behavioral basis, the "silent" symbols for learning, understanding, and communicating, expert dog trainer and competitor Cheryl S. Smith reveals how you can use your own body language to send a message and even teach a dog what specific words mean. She reveals how a dog’s breed can affect his personality and explains how to decode and correct common behavior problems. With the knowledge and solutions this book provides, you will train more effectively, enjoy your dog more, and ease your own stress.

Dogs Never Lie About Love: Reflections on the Emotional World of Dogs
This book was written by Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson in 1997 and published by Crown Publishers. Everyone who loves dogs, and who knows the joy of being loved by a dog, will want this book. Masson knows that dogs can experience joy and sorrow, fear and despair, and that they can be loyal and above all loving. This book will cause many to think about dogs in an entirely different light.

when animals speak (2004)
By Penelope Smith. Advanced interspecies communication. You will discover who animals say they truly are; how they feel about humans and life on earth; how they choose their paths in life and death; what their spiritual understanding and purposes are; and how they can be our teachers, helping us heal ourselves and guiding us back to wholeness. You will experience the animals' refreshing, moving, and sometimes startling points of view.

Love, Miracles, and Animal Healing: (A Heartwarming Look at the Spiritual Bond Between Animals and Humans)
This book was written by Allen Schoen, DVM and published by Simon & Schuster in 1996. This book explains how our love for animals enhances their health & well being, increases our ability to communicate with them, and can literally save their lives. Don't miss the wonderful section on dog massages.

Wild Justice: The Moral Lives of Animals (2009)
Scientists have long counseled against interpreting animal behavior in terms of human emotions, warning that such anthropomorphizing limits our ability to understand animals as they really are. Yet what are we to make of a female gorilla in a German zoo who spent days mourning the death of her baby? Or a wild female elephant who cared for a younger one after she was injured by a rambunctious teenage male? Or a rat who refused to push a lever for food when he saw that doing so caused another rat to be shocked? Aren’t these clear signs that animals have recognizable emotions and moral intelligence? With Wild Justice Drs. Marc Bekoff and Jessica Pierce unequivocally answer yes.

Marrying years of behavioral and cognitive research with compelling and moving anecdotes, Bekoff and Pierce reveal that animals exhibit a broad repertoire of moral behaviors, including fairness, empathy, trust, and reciprocity. Underlying these behaviors is a complex and nuanced range of emotions, backed by a high degree of intelligence and surprising behavioral flexibility. Animals, in short, are incredibly adept social beings, relying on rules of conduct to navigate intricate social networks that are essential to their survival. Ultimately, Bekoff and Pierce draw the astonishing conclusion that there is no moral gap between humans and other species: morality is an evolved trait that we unquestionably share with other social mammals. Sure to be controversial, Wild Justice offers not just cutting-edge science, but a provocative call to rethink our relationship with—and our responsibilities toward—our fellow animals.

The Wolf in the Parlor: The Eternal Connection between Humans and Dogs (2009)
A man and puppy exhumed from a 12,000-year-old grave sends two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning science writer, Jon Franklin, on a journey to the dogs. Of all the things hidden in plain sight, dogs are one of the most enigmatic. They are everywhere but how much do we really know about where they came from and what the implications are of their place in our world? Jon Franklin set out to find out and ended up spending a decade studying the origins and significance of the dog and its peculiar attachment to humans. As the intellectual pursuit of his subject began to take over Franklin's life, he married a dog lover and was quickly introduced to the ancient and powerful law of nature, to wit: Love me, love my dog. Soon Franklin was sharing hearth and home with a soulful and clever poodle named Charlie.

And so began one man's journey to the dogs, an odyssey that would take him from a 12,000-year-old grave to a conclusion so remarkable as to change our perception of ourselves. Building on evolutionary science, archaeology, behavioral science, and the firsthand experience of watching his own dog evolve from puppy to family member, Franklin posits that man and dog are more than just inseparable; they are part and parcel of the same creature. Along the way, The Wolf in the Parlor imparts a substantial yet painless education on subjects as far ranging as psychological evolution and neurochemistry. In this groundbreaking book, master storyteller Franklin shatters the lens through which we see the world and shows us an unexpected, enthralling picture of the human/canine relationship.

Made for Each Other: The Biology of the Human-Animal Bond (2010)
By Meg Daley Olmert. This is the first book to lay out both sides of this profound link between humans and animals―the chemistry and science behind the connection to our animal companions. Nothing turns a baby's head more quickly than the sight or sound of an animal. This fascination is driven by the ancient chemical forces that first drew humans and animals together. It is also the same biology that transformed wolves into dogs and skittish horses into valiant comrades that would carry us into battle. "Made for Each Other" is the first book to explain how this chemistry of attraction and attachment flows through―and between―all mammals to create the profound emotional bonds humans and animals still feel today.

Drawing on recent discoveries from neuroscience, evolutionary biology, behavioral psychology, archeology, as well as her own investigations, Meg Daley Olmert explains why the brain chemistry humans and animals trigger in each other also has a profound effect on our mental and physical well being. This lively and original investigation asks what happens when the bond is severed. If thousands of years of caring for animals infused us with a biology that shaped our hearts and minds, do we dare turn our back on it? Meg makes a compelling and scientific case for what our hearts have always known, that we were, and always will be, made for each other.

Canine Courage: The Heroism of Dogs (2002)
Written by Tiffin Shewmake. Do dogs really save people? Which breeds are the most heroic? The least? Why would a dog risk its life for a person? Find out in Canine Courage, an in-depth look at heroism in untrained dogs like Bo, who dived underwater to pull his owner out from under a canoe, or Woodie, who jumped off an 80 foot cliff to save her owner's fiancée from drowning. Explores what motivates these dogs and other such mysteries like the understanding dogs have of danger, how dogs know what to do and how heroic behavior developed in dogs.

Beauty in the Beasts : True Stories of Animals Who Choose to Do Good
This book was written by Kristin Von Kreisler and published by J. P. Tarcher in May 2001. She argues that animals do not only act instinctively, they are also capable of making conscious even moral choices. To prove her point, she offers scores of extraordinary anecdotes in which animals demonstrate eight clearly identifiable virtues usually only ascribed to humans. Kreisler also argues that these traits of sensitivity, compassion, courage, loyalty, fortitude, cooperation, resourcefulness and generosity are actually "extensions of the same life force" that extends throughout the animal kingdom.

Dog Spelled Backward (2005)
Written by Fernando Camacho. Natural disasters ravage the world, while people scramble to save themselves. On the day the terror strikes New Jersey, Ryan finds a strange dog on his doorstep. The dog looks like an average stray, but Ryan soon learns that this is no ordinary canine. Guided by this extraordinary dog, Ryan travels across the countryside, surviving everything from raging fires to explosive earthquakes. Along the way, he is joined by other survivors and together they are witness to the evils and injustices of man. To stay alive, Ryan must not only put his faith in this unique dog, but in himself as well. Soon, Ryan realizes that he’s not only fighting for his own survival, but the survival of all mankind.

Canines in the Classroom (2004)
Written by Michelle Rivera. Raising humane children through interactions with animals. Shows how to use classroom pets and animal programs to teach humane treatment of animals in the classroom and become a part of a growing movement raising society's awareness of how we treat one another and our ultimate home, the Earth. Includes some lesson plans, case histories dealing with animal cruelty, results of bringing animals into classrooms, etc.

The New Work of Dogs: Tending to Life, Love, and Family (2003)
Combines personal narratives with a look at human/animal attachment, and questions whether this relationship shift is an entirely positive phenomenon for both species. The author describes a community (and a country) that is turning to its pets for emotional support and stability - a difficult job that more and more dogs are expected to do every day.

Woman's Best Friend: A Celebration of Dogs and Their Women
This book was written by Barbara Cohen & Louise Taylor and published by Little Brown & Company in June 1996. This book is a pictorial celebration of the special bond between canines and their female human companions. 

Animals as Teachers & Healers
This book was written by Susan Chernak McElroy and published by Ballantine Books in 1997. She is a cancer survivor who credits much of her triumph over terminal illness to the love of the animals in her life. From the courage of her dog, Keesha, who taught her how to face challenges with grace & acceptance, to the uncanny victory over leukemia she witnessed in a kitten, Susan McElroy gives a chronicle of her healing journey. And, she shares true testaments from those who have also been touched, for a moment or for a lifetime, by the loving energies of animals. If you have forgotten how to see angels, this book can help in reconnecting with the joy, wisdom, and healing that comes from our ageless relationship with the animal kingdom. It is certainly a treat for anyone who cares about animals, or secretly thinks they just might be angels in disguise!

Animals as Guides for the Soul: Stories of Life-Changing Encounters
This book was written by Susan Chernak McElroy and published by Ballantine Books in November 1998. Seeing life as a table, Susan shows how animals must have a seat at the table. They must be neither above nor below humans. Rather, they need to be on equal footing. This book teaches us to find joy in animals.

All My Relations: Living with Animals As Teachers and Healers (2004)
Susan Chernak McElroy, author of the New York Times bestseller Animals As Healers and Teachers, has long believed that animals offer solace as well as lessons in living to anyone willing to listen. In her bestseller Animals As Teachers and Healers, she told others' stories of the healing power of animals. In this book, she tells her own stories. Described by the author as a kind of prayer, the ten stories here explore concepts of ownership; naming, and unnaming, things; interpreting signs and language; animals as mirrors of the soul; and honoring one's own stories. Typical is the story about rats that explores what it means to be stigmatized, for both humans and animals. Included are suggestions for practices and meditations that will guide readers into deeper connection with their own stories and their own relationships with those creatures with whom they share their lives.

Animal Grace: Entering a Spiritual Relationship With Our Fellow Creatures (2002)
Animal Grace is an outstanding contribution to a new genre of literature that boldly asserts the profound spiritual connection many humans feel toward animals. When author Mary Lou Randour began sending money to animals-rights groups a new world opened up for her. Envelopes filled with "heart-stopping, stomach-wrenching" images started appearing in her mailbox--beaten dogs, abused laboratory animals. Finally she read Peter Singer's book Animal Liberation and began to recognize the deep kinship and responsibility she felt toward animals. Since then Randour has devoted her life to animal advocacy, and from walking this path she has come to an understanding of spiritual grace. She uses her journalism skills to recount stories of wild and tame animals--how they have helped to heal human illnesses, turn child criminals into loving adults, and comforted us in times of grief. Yet Randour is more than a convincing researcher, vegetarian, and storyteller, she is also a spiritually mature writer. Each chapter supports the overriding theme of respecting interspecies connections--such as "Entering into a Spiritual Relationship with Animals," "Animals' Souls and Spiritual Lives," and "The Parallel Worlds of Human and Nonhuman Animals."

The Compassion of Dogs: True Stories of Animal Courage and Kindness (2002)
Cultivated by centuries of loyalty, the compassion of a dog is a connection that goes well beyond the basic pet-owner relationship. It characterizes the ability of dogs to sense the emotions of humans and generate deep and loving responses in the most adverse situations. The Compassion of Dogs is a celebration of the tender relationships that humans and dogs share. Readers will find a fabulous collection of true stories that illustrate how dogs display such emotions as compassion, courage, intuition, and loyalty. These fascinating accounts of the powers of animal-human relationships feature the innate responses of dogs and their aptitude for seizing any opportunity to play humble hero, all the while earning the respect, love, and admiration of all who cross their trail. "If you loved dogs before you read this wonderful book, you'll love them even more when you're done. The true stories in The Compassion of Dogs will warm your heart, kindle your spirit, and leave no doubt that dogs are highly emotional and caring beings. Read it and share with friends and family."

The Language of Animals (2001)
By Carol Gurney. Seven steps to Communicating with Animals. The author developed her 7-step HeartTalk Program to help people communicate with and make a spiritual connection with their animal companions. She presents her program through lectures, workshops, audio and video, and provides consultations. Designed to teach animal owners how to communicate with their companions, this book includes: Preparation, Initiating contact, Overcoming communication Breakdowns, The Animals in Your Life, Finding Solutions to Behavioral Problems, Relocating with Animals, Finding Lost Animals, Comforting Sick & Injured Animals (includes dealing with death), Learning to Love.

The Ten Trusts: What We Must Do to Care for the Animals We Love (2003)
By Jane Goodall & Marc Bekoff. World-renowned behavioral scientists argue passionately and persuasively that if we put these ten trusts to work in our lives, the earth and all its inhabitants will be able to live together harmoniously. Simple yet profound, The Ten Trusts will not only change our perspective regarding how we live on this planet, it will establish our responsibilities as stewards of the natural world, ultimately showing us how to live with respect for all life. Marc Bekoff will speaking at the APDT conference this fall in Denver.

Between Pets and People: The Importance of Animal Companionship
This book was written by Alan Beck, Aaron Katcher, and Elizabeth Marshall Thomas and published by the Purdue University Press in 1996. These authors were the original researchers of well-known studies that showed our physical and emotional health could be improved with human-animal interaction. This book looks at the evidence that animals have a significant impact on human life and health. It also shows how important companion animals are in our lives.

Bones Would Rain from the Sky: Deepening Our Relationships with Dogs (2005)
Written by Suzanne Clothier, this incredible book is a beautifully written exploration of the ways in which humans can establish a better rapport with their dogs. Positing that owners' relationships with their canine companions have the power to make them more human-and humane, the author examines the way owner/dog relationships go wrong, and how owners can make them right. Profound and practical, the book offers new insights into behavioral problems, improved communication, and mutual respect and trust, while challenging readers to re-examine their own attitudes and discover the joy in a genuine partnership.

Golden Days: Memories of a Golden Retriever
This book was written by Arthur Vanderbilt in 1998, and will be published by Bantam Doubleday in November 1999 in a paperback edition. This is a beautiful tale of the affection between people and their very special dogs. There is no love quite like the love of a Golden Retriever, and this story of a doting darling named Amy is truly Golden. It is a love story that illustrates how a Golden can teach us about ourselves and the world we share. As the author writes, "She had taken us places we never would have gone and shown us things we never would have seen without her."

The Bond: People and Their Animals
This book was written by Roger A. Caras, with photography by Shel Secunda, and published by Simon & Schuster in November 1997. This book captures the unique kinship between people and the animals they love. Guy Coheleach (wildlife artist), Morley Safer, Mary Tyler Moore and Jane Alexander all share their love of Goldens.

A Friend Like No Other: Life Lessons from the Dogs We Love
This book was written by H. Norman Wright, illustrated by Jim Lamb, and published in June 1999 by Harvest House Publishers The author has put together a joyful book of stories funny and tender about how dogs enrich our lives. His love for his own dogs has given him insight into the companionship and warmth of "a little heartbeat at your feet." The book shows how dogs demonstrate loyalty, selflessness, and unswerving devotion for those they love.

Our Best Friends: Wagging Tales to Warm the Heart
This book was written by Michael Capuzzo & Teresa Banik Capuzzo, and published by Bantam Books in 1998. It is a collection of remarkable true stories that celebrate the powerful and nurturing bond between people and their dogs. There's lots of laughter here, but also tears, so make sure you have your tissues nearby! Don't miss "Jeremy Boob, Golden Retriever" and "The Golden Moment."

Delphi: What Being on Earth Is All About (2002)
This book was written by Patricia Jepsen and her Golden Retriever, Delphi. This book testifies to the tremendous contribution that the animal kingdom wishes to make to the healing of the earth and humanity’s heart. These extraordinary animal stories, as well as Golden Delphi’s own journey from show dog to master teacher, may cause the reader to laugh or to cry or simply to whisper, "Yes!" The book is a celebration of life that moves us to recall and respond to the need for and responsibility of each of us in the circle of life. While generating an ever expanding circle of respect, community and cooperative communication, "Delphi" explores, confirms and reinforces the interconnectedness that brings hope and empowerment to our daily lives in a time of changing paradigms.

The Angel by My Side
By Mike Lingenfelter & David Frei. Won the Dog Writer's Association of America's Award, Best General Interest Book of 2003! Mike Lingenfelter was ready for his life to be over. Two serious heart attacks and open-heart surgery had taken away most of the good things that he had in his life. He just didn't care anymore. His doctors still held out hope for him, however, and they kept trying to find ways to motivate him to get out of the house and exercise. Their vision was that an energetic dog on a leash might do that for Mike. And so it was that this Golden Retriever named Dakota, who had been rescued himself, came to help Mike with his therapy. Their relationship wasn't supposed to be anything too profound or metaphysical or scientific, but as it turns out, at the other end of the leash was much more than a dog. Dakota gave Mike back his dignity, his pride, and his life. Early on it became evident to Mike that this wonderful 98 pound, red-haired, 4-legged angel had a special gift: Dakota was a spirit guide, and it was Mike's duty to share him and the power of the human-animal bond. Dakota continually helped make miracles happen, for Mike and for others. But ultimately, as part of that journey, one more miracle was needed, as Dakota fought a courageous and dignified battle for his own life.

The Leading Lady: Dinah's Story
This book was written by Betty White and Tom Sullivan and published by Bantam Books in 1991. This is an account of two celebrities and the Golden guide dog who touched both their lives. When Sullivan, blind since birth, realizes that his devoted guide dog Dinah is herself losing her sight, he is forced to adopt a new working dog. But Dinah cannot accept this "career change" to family pet. Betty White, a longtime friend and animal-lover, comes to the rescue by taking Dinah in. This is an appealing book that gives insight into the lives of the blind and sends a huge message about human-animal bonding.

Kinship With All Life
This book was written by J. Allen Boone and published in paperback by Harper Brooks. This books offers some entertaining proof that communication with animals is not a fantasy out of Dr. Doolittle. Instead, it is really just a fact of life. This book demonstrates that there is a universal language of love, a "kinship with all life." It documents simple, real-life experiences that show how animals communicate with each other and people.

Disposable Dogs: Heartwarming, True Stories of Courage and Compassion (2004)
This book was written by Steve Swanbeck. Disposable Dogs is an unforgettable collection of seventy captivating true stories of dogs from across the United States who were outcasts until they met up with caring people who recognized their worth—in some cases just hours before the lovable animals were scheduled to die. You'll meet dogs who are smart, heroic, funny, loyal—all sorts of special pets with extraordinary experiences to share. There's the young Saint Bernard who was adopted from a shelter at the eleventh hour and went on to become the mascot for a professional football team...the neighborly Golden Retriever who was abandoned when her owner died and soon afterward saved a toddler from falling off a cliff...the elderly blind mutt and deaf old mongrel who found each other near the end of their lonely lives and remained soul mates forever. These and scores of other tales are sure to make you laugh, reflect, admire and, perhaps, swallow hard when an unexpected lump wags its tail in your throat. Disposable Dogs celebrates the meaningful, wondrous lives that have been rescued by good people who make a difference.

Stories of Dogs and the Lives They Touch (2003)
This book was edited by Peggy Schaefer. Dogs have long been heralded as man's best friend. In this new collection that draws stories from the archives of Guideposts magazines as well as other writers, readers will discover why. Here are amazing stories of dogs who love unconditionally, who protect fearlessly, and who sometimes forget they are dogs. Some stories are touching, some are humorous, and some are bittersweet. But all will touch the hearts of dog owners and dog lovers alike.

Pack of Two (1998)
Written by Caroline Knapp. The intricate bond between people and dogs. The author lost both her parents, and was recovering from alcoholism when she found an 8-week-old puppy at a local animal shelter. She adopted the puppy, named her "Lucille" and now, at 2 years old, Lucille has become a central force in the author's life. The bond between people and their dogs is addressed from personal experience, as well as from the viewpoint of animal behaviorists, psychologists, and other owners.

Found Dogs
This book was written by Elise Lufkin & Peter Mayle, with photography by Diana Walker, and was published by the Howell Book House in December 1997. The photos are great in this book and there is a fascinating cast of people and dogs that make this book irresistible. Celebrities that have contributed here include Jamie Lee Curtis and Al Gore. This book is a moving tribute to the power of love between people and dogs. It shows so beautifully how that love has transformed dogs who were lost, and the people who were lucky enough to find them.
 

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